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Title: Analysis of the habitat of Henslow's sparrows and Grasshopper sparrows compared to random grassland areas

Abstract

Henslow's Sparrows are endangered prairie birds, and Grasshopper Sparrows are considered rare prairie birds. Both of these birds were abundant in Illinois, but their populations have been declining due to loss of the grasslands. This begins an ongoing study of the birds habitat so Fermilab can develop a land management plan for the Henslow's and Grasshoppers. The Henslow's were found at ten sites and Grasshoppers at eight sites. Once the birds were located, the vegetation at their sites was studied. Measurements of the maximum plant height, average plant height, and duff height were taken and estimates of the percent of grass, forbs, duff, and bare ground were recorded for each square meter studied. The same measurements were taken at ten random grassland sites on Fermilab property. Several t-tests were performed on the data, and it was found that both Henslow's Sparrows and Grasshopper Sparrows preferred areas with a larger percentage of grass than random areas. Henslow's also preferred areas with less bare ground than random areas, while Grasshoppers preferred areas with more bare ground than random areas. In addition, Grasshopper Sparrows preferred a lower percentage of forbs than was found in random areas and a shorter average plant height thanmore » the random locations. Two-sample variance tests suggested significantly less variance for both Henslow's Sparrows and Grasshopper Sparrows for maximum plant height in comparison to the random sites. For both birds, the test suggested a significant difference in the variance of the percentage of bare ground compared to random sites, but only the Grasshopper Sparrow showed significance in the variation in the percentage of forbs.« less

Authors:
; ;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Fermi National Accelerator Lab. (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
902192
Report Number(s):
FERMILAB-PUB-05-645-AD-FESS
TRN: US200717%%172
DOE Contract Number:  
AC02-07CH11359
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; BIRDS; FERMILAB; GRAMINEAE; GRASSHOPPERS; HABITAT; MANAGEMENT; PLANTS; RANGELANDS; Other

Citation Formats

Maier, Kristen, Walton, Rod, Kasper, Peter, and /Fermilab. Analysis of the habitat of Henslow's sparrows and Grasshopper sparrows compared to random grassland areas. United States: N. p., 2005. Web.
Maier, Kristen, Walton, Rod, Kasper, Peter, & /Fermilab. Analysis of the habitat of Henslow's sparrows and Grasshopper sparrows compared to random grassland areas. United States.
Maier, Kristen, Walton, Rod, Kasper, Peter, and /Fermilab. 2005. "Analysis of the habitat of Henslow's sparrows and Grasshopper sparrows compared to random grassland areas". United States. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/902192.
@article{osti_902192,
title = {Analysis of the habitat of Henslow's sparrows and Grasshopper sparrows compared to random grassland areas},
author = {Maier, Kristen and Walton, Rod and Kasper, Peter and /Fermilab},
abstractNote = {Henslow's Sparrows are endangered prairie birds, and Grasshopper Sparrows are considered rare prairie birds. Both of these birds were abundant in Illinois, but their populations have been declining due to loss of the grasslands. This begins an ongoing study of the birds habitat so Fermilab can develop a land management plan for the Henslow's and Grasshoppers. The Henslow's were found at ten sites and Grasshoppers at eight sites. Once the birds were located, the vegetation at their sites was studied. Measurements of the maximum plant height, average plant height, and duff height were taken and estimates of the percent of grass, forbs, duff, and bare ground were recorded for each square meter studied. The same measurements were taken at ten random grassland sites on Fermilab property. Several t-tests were performed on the data, and it was found that both Henslow's Sparrows and Grasshopper Sparrows preferred areas with a larger percentage of grass than random areas. Henslow's also preferred areas with less bare ground than random areas, while Grasshoppers preferred areas with more bare ground than random areas. In addition, Grasshopper Sparrows preferred a lower percentage of forbs than was found in random areas and a shorter average plant height than the random locations. Two-sample variance tests suggested significantly less variance for both Henslow's Sparrows and Grasshopper Sparrows for maximum plant height in comparison to the random sites. For both birds, the test suggested a significant difference in the variance of the percentage of bare ground compared to random sites, but only the Grasshopper Sparrow showed significance in the variation in the percentage of forbs.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/902192}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2005},
month = {Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2005}
}